Improved skate-fastening



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

DAVID MAYDOLE, OF NORVIICH, NEW' YORK.

IMPROVED SKATE-FASTENING.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 34,896, dated April 8, 1862.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID MAYDoLE, of Norwich, in the county of Ohenango and State of New York, have inventeda new and useful Improvement in Skate-Fastenings, designed more especially for ladies skates; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a longitudinal vertical section ot' a skate with my invention applied to it, a;

, Fig. 2, indicating the plane of section; Fig.-

2, an inverted plan of the same; Fig. 3, a vertical section of a portion of the same, taken on the line y y, Fig.

Similar letters of reference indicate-corresponding parts in the several figures.

This invention consists in a novel and i1n proved manner of securing the heeLstrap or counter to the skate, whereby the former is irmly retained in position and without being liable to be torn from the skate or stretched out of proper shape under the tension to which it is subjected when the skate is secured to the foot, the same means also serving to secure the back post or knee of the runner to the heel plate or socket of the skate.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct Iny invention, I will proceed to describe it.

A represents the runner ot' the skate, which may be of the usual or any proper foi-in, and B is the front and B the back post or knee of the runner. To the upper end of the front post B of the runner there is attached a horizontal steel plate O, which may be of oval or elliptical form, as shown in Fig. 2, and extending a short distance back of the post B and forward to the front part of the runner. This plate O maybe of any desired width. It should not be Inuch less wide, however, than the average width of what would be called small or narrow7 feet. The front part of y said plate is made quite thin. It gradually diminishes in thickness from the post B to its front end, and is sufciently thin to be elas tic or yield or give to the foot of the wearer `in skating, the plate being tempered so as to favor elasticity-in other words brought to a spring temper.

At each side of the plate (l there is an eye or loop D, to which the front strap E of the skate is attached. One at least of these eyes or loops should be adjustable in a direction transverse with plate O. This is effected as follows: The eye or loop D is formed at the upper end of an angle-plate F, the lower part a of which is fitted in a recess or sunken portion b of plate O, and is secured therein by a screw G, which passes through an oblong transverse slot c in the plate C and then into the part av of F. (See Figs. 2 and 8.) Bynuserewing the screw G the plate F may be moved or adjusted farther in or outon plate C and secured at any desired point within the scope of its movement by screwing up the screw G. This will be fully understood by referring to Fig. 3. By this means it will be seen that the two eyes or hooks D D may be adjusted nearer together or farther apart to suit the width of the foot, and consequently the front part of the skate adj usted snugly to the foot. It would probably be preferable to.

have both eyes or loops D D made adjustable, as described, as in that case a central position et' the skate to the foot is attained.

On the upper end of the back part B of the runner there is placed a plate Il. This plate may be of circular, oval, or other form, and it is provided at its under side with a projection d, through which and the plate H a hole is made vertically to allow the upper part of post B to p ass through. The upper part ax ot" the post B' is of cylindrical form, and a shoulder e is on the post at the lower end of its cylindrical part, on which shoulder the projection (Z rests, as shown in Fig. l.

The plate II has a iiange f all around it, said flange being inclined and considerably higher at the back part of its plate G than at its sides and front part. The flange .f at the sides of plate II, however, is higher than at its front side, as shown clearly by the dotted lines in Fig. 1.

On the upper part a* ot the post B a screwthread is cut to receive a nut I, and J is a plate which corresponds -in form to plate G,H

with the exception that it has no flange fand is somewhat smaller than G, in order that it may iit within the flange fand upon the bot-- The plate J has a circular hole g made at its center to receive the nut I, which is of circular form and has a beveled or inclined edge to t snugly into the hole g, which has its edges or side beveled to receive the nut, the upper surface of the latter beingflush with the upper surface of plate J as shown in Fig. l.

The heel-strap or counter K extends quite high up at its back part in order to form a good bearing-surface for the shoe of the wearer, and the front part of said strap or counter ext-ends obliquely over the shoe at the back of the instep and has its ends secured'together by a buckle L. The lower part of the heel-strap or counter K is rmly clamped between the two plates H J by screwing down the nut I, and in order t0 give the upper plate J a iirin or proper bearing atits front edge a piece of leather b) is inserted between it and H, said leather being equal in thickness to the lower part of the heel-strap or counter K. (See Fig. l.)

The nut I and plate J, it will be seen, not only clamp and rmly secure the heel-strap or counter to the skate, but they also secure the plate H to the post B.

, The advantages of this arrangementpof the heel-strap fastening are as follows: First, the iiange f serves as a protection to the lower part of the heel-strap or counter, preventing 1 it from chafing and keeping it in proper shape,

and also serving as a socket to receive the heel ot' the shoe and cause it to be held firmly in proper position; second, the plates H J form a perfect clamp and hold firmly the bottom of the heel-strap or counter K at every point around its lower edge, so that it cannot be casually withdrawn from between said plates, while the same means that is employed for clamping the plates I-I J together-to wit, the screw and nut-are also used as a means for securing said plates to the post B of the skate. Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. Securing the heel-strap or counter K to the back part of the skate by means of the two plates H J, placed one over the other and connected together by a screw or screws, with the lower end of the strap or counter placed between the plates, as set forth.

2. The two plates H J, the former being provided with a flangef, in combination with the screw ax on the upper part of the post B', and the nut I, placed on the screw and fitting in the hole g of plate J, vall vbeing arranged,

as shown, to admit of the heel-strap or counter being attached to the skate and the plates H J to the post B thereof, as set forth.

DA'VID MAYDOLE.

NVitnesses: Y

R. GAWLEY, G. W. REED. 

